THE BAHAMAS NATIONAL ASSESSMENT REPORT for the TEN-YEAR REVIEW for the Implementation of the Barbados Programme of Action 2004 - 1 - THE BARBADOS PROGRAMME OF ACTION – THE BAHAMAS TEN-YEAR REVIEW Page Preamble ......................................………………………….….........…….....……. 2 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………… 7 1 Climate Change and Sea Level Rise ............………………..….........………. 10 2 Natural and Environmental Disasters .....…………………………......…… 13 3 Coastal and Marine Resources .............…………………….….............…… 14 4 Land Resources ................…………………………................................…… 18 5 Biodiversity Resources .......................……………………….................…… 20 6 Energy ……………….......................……………………….................…...……..22 7 Management of Wastes ........................…………………….........…......…… 24 8 Fresh Water Resources ..........................…………………….............….....…26 9 Tourism Resources .......................……………………….......…............……. 31 10 Science and Technology .....................…………………….................………. 33 11 Health ………………………………………………………………….……… 34 12 Capacity Building and Coordination ………………………………………. 35 13 Financial Investment in Trade and Services ………………………………. 36 14 Framework for Sustainable Development ......…………………….......…… 38 - 2 - PREAMBLE 1. In 1992, at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, (also known as the Earth Summit and the Rio Summit) the world community adopted Agenda 21. Agenda 21 reflects a global consensus and political commitment at the highest level, to development and environmental cooperation. The cooperation of all States is a prerequisite for the fulfilment of the objectives of Agenda 21. Such cooperation must also respond to the special circumstances and particular vulnerabilities of countries, through adequate and specific approaches. 2. The Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, which was held 25 April- 6 May 1994 is the first Global Conference on sustainable development and the implementation of Agenda 21. Agenda 21 represents a comprehensive document, carefully negotiated and, wherever referred to in the present Programme of Action, should be looked to as a whole. 3. The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development identifies human beings as being at the centre of concerns for sustainable development. Development initiatives in Small Island Developing States should be seen in relation to both the needs and aspirations of human beings, and their responsibility towards present and future generations. Small Island Developing States have valuable resources including oceans, coastal environments, biodiversity, and most importantly, human resources. Their potential is recognised, but the challenge for Small Island Developing States is to ensure that they are used in a sustainable way for the well-being of both present and future generations. Although they are afflicted by economic difficulties, and are confronted by development imperatives similar to those of developing countries generally, Small Island Developing States also have their own peculiar vulnerabilities and characteristics, so that the difficulties they face in the pursuit of sustainable development are particularly severe and complex. 4. There are many disadvantages that derive from small size, and they are magnified by the fact that many island States are not only small, but are also made up of a number of small islands. These disadvantages include: a limited range of resources, which necessitate undue specialisation; excessive dependence on international trade, hence vulnerability to global developments; high population density, which increases the pressure on already limited resources; overuse of resources and premature depletion; relatively small watersheds and threatened supplies of fresh water; costly public administration and infrastructure, including transportation and communication; limited institutional capacities; and domestic markets that are too small to provide significant economies of scale. Meanwhile, their limited export volumes, sometimes from remote locations, lead to high freight costs and reduced competitiveness. Small islands tend to have high degrees of endemism of fauna and flora and high levels of biodiversity, but the relatively small numbers of the various species impose high risks of extinction and create a need for protection. 5. The small size of Small Island Developing States also means that development and environment are closely interrelated and interdependent. Recent human history contains examples of entire islands rendered uninhabitable through environmental destruction owing to external causes. Small Island Developing States are fully aware that the environmental consequences of ill-conceived development can be catastrophic. Unsustainable development not only threatens the present livelihood of the people, but also the islands themselves and the cultures they nurture. Climate change, climate variability and sea level rise, are issues of grave - 3 - concern. Similarly, the biological resources, on which Small Island Developing States depend, are threatened by the large-scale exploitation of marine and terrestrial living resources. 6. Many Small Island Developing States are entirely or predominantly coastal entities. Due to the small size, isolation and fragility, of island ecosystems, their renowned biological diversity is among the most threatened in the world. Because of this, in pursuing development, special attention must be paid to protecting the environment and the peoples’ livelihoods. It also requires the integrated management of resources. 7. In some Small Island Developing States, the rate of population growth exceeds the rate of economic growth, placing serious and increasing pressure on the capacity of those countries to provide basic services to their people, and placing a heavy burden on women in particular as heads of households. Although their population densities may be high, many Small Island Developing States have small populations, in absolute terms, that are insufficient to generate economies of scale in several areas. They therefore have limited scope for the full utilisation of certain types of highly specialised expertise. They experience high levels of emigration, particularly of skilled human resources, which not only places an undue burden on training facilities, but also forces countries to import high-cost foreign expertise. 8. The lack of opportunities for achieving economies of scale, together with narrow resource bases, tends to limit the overall productivity of Small Island Developing States to a narrow range of crops, minerals and industries, whether manufacturing or services. Any adverse development concerning those productive sectors, whether arising from external market factors or from natural or environmental constraints, is likely to lead to significant reductions in output and in foreign-exchange earnings, and to increased unemployment. 9. Partly because of their small size, and partly because of their vulnerability to natural and environmental disasters, most Small Island Developing States are classified as high-risk entities. This has led to insurance and reinsurance being either unavailable or exorbitantly expensive, with adverse consequences for investment, production costs, government finances and infrastructure. 10. Because the per capita income of many Small Islands Developing States tends to be higher than that of developing countries as a group, they tend to have limited access to concessionary resources. However, analysis of the economic performance of Small Island Developing States suggests that current incomes are often facilitated by migrant remittances, preferential market access for some major exports, and assistance from the international community. These are sources that are neither endogenous nor secure. Furthermore, these incomes have generally been unstable over time. Natural and man-made disasters, difficulties in the international market for particular commodities, and recession in some developed economies, often reduce national incomes in Small Island Developing States dramatically, sometimes by as much as 20 to 30 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in a single year. 11. Because small island development options are limited, they present special challenges to planning for, and implementing sustainable development. To meet that challenge, the most valuable asset of Small Island Developing States is their human resources, which need to be given every opportunity to fulfil their potential and to contribute meaningfully to national, regional and international development, such as is consistent with the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and Agenda 21. Small Island Developing States will encounter constraints in meeting these challenges, without the cooperation and assistance of the - 4 - international community. The sustainable development of Small Island Developing States requires actions that address these constraints to development. Those actions should integrate environmental considerations, natural resource conservation objectives and gender considerations, consistent with Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, into the development of social and economic development policies for international, regional, sub regional and/or bilateral cooperative programmes related to islands. 12. Within Small Island Developing States the critical contribution of women